January 23, 2012 · 5:18 pm

Champagne calling (Champagne, France – Day One)

For those following this blog, you may have noticed a large gap since my last post. The reason for this is that it is difficult to make appointments at wineries no matter where between Christmas and the third week of January. Even winemakers, marketers and owners of wineries need a break sometime. Thus I took the opportunity to spend time with friends in Brazil over Christmas and New Years, and then a week in Paris before heading to my first official region in Europe and the perfect aperitif; Champagne. This was my second visit to the home of sparkling wine, having ended a three-week journey to France here in 2010. It was a great feeling arriving into Reims on the TGV train early in the morning and seeing the sun rise on a wintery day. You truly appreciate the cold climate here when visiting in winter. I picked up my rental car early as I had my first appointment at 9: 00 am.

Amazing lunch at Taittinger

Amazing lunch at Taittinger

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December 24, 2011 · 9:46 pm

South America – observations and learnings

Talk about potential! Chile and Argentina have been improving every aspect of wine production since the 80s, and as they learn more about their unique terroir and which varieties and styles to focus on in their regions, the sky’s the limit. Chile in particular seems to have such an amazing range of different climates, soil types and elevations that they could theoretically produce any wine style imaginable. People in the industry here are some of the warmest and most genuine I have ever encountered. The quality of the wines speaks volume, but it is the enthusiasm and honesty with which they are produced that makes them so special. In many of the wineries I visited I felt so welcome it was hard to leave so soon.

Very old vineyards in Cafayate, Argentina

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December 23, 2011 · 1:36 am

Come on down to torrontes town (Salta, Argentina – Day Two)

Funny how hindsight is always 20/20, but Salta was a very expensive detour to make. Firstly the rental car here was the most expensive I’ve experienced at $100+ per day, plus a navigator. Then you factor in the three hours each way from Salta, and the three hours each way to Colome, and that adds up to a fair amount of fuel for two days. Then on the way back from Colome on the previous day I had a blow-out without realising on the gravel highway, and subsequently damaged the wheel, which cost me $220 damages. When you add on accommodation and food, I ended up spending about $500 for two days, well over the $100 per day budget I have set myself. Was it worth the effort and expense? We shall see…

Very old vines on a very hot day

Very old vines on a very hot day

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December 23, 2011 · 12:14 am

Did someone say isolated? (Salta, Argentina – Day One)

I tossed around a couple of ideas for the name of this entry; Cafayate to Colome Rally; On top of the world, looking down on creation; Extreme altitude; High society; There and back again. Really any of them could apply to the adventures of the day. After arriving quite late into Cafayate the previous night and getting a good night sleep, I was keen to get to Colome on time. Little did I know that getting to the Colome winery is possibly one of the most laborious and treacherous I have ever experienced. Now in my days as a wine professional I’ve driven on unsealed roads to get to wineries plenty of time. Mostly they are the driveway or a side road off the highway, but nothing like this. The National Route 40 for a good 75km from Cafayate to Molinos and beyond is like outback Australia, also because of the scenery. This is not the kind of setting you expect to find a winery, let alone vineyards. Significantly drier and warmer during the day than Mendoza, the altitude of the Salta region alone makes this a cooler climate, as the daylight hours are shorter and the nights are colder.

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December 22, 2011 · 11:30 am

Flagships (Mendoza, Argentina – Day Five)

For my (unfortunately) final day in Mendoza, I visited three wineries; two similar, one different. The first was established back in 1901 (the year of Australia’s federation!) by a Spaniard, who named the winery Bosca. It became Luigi Bosca for reasons I can’t quite fathom, but they had something to do with marketing. I’m not sure how the addition of Luigi helps, considering he was the dud Mario Brother… Anyway, the cellar is very large and historic, combining Mendoza cement fermenters stainless steel, 5,000 barrels for maturing the wines, and a fantastic museum area where the 12 pillars of the cross are reimagined as the life cycle of wine and Luigi Bosca. The winery produces in excess of 8 million litres of wine each year, covering 35 different wines. No mean feat for the consultant winemaker Roberto de la Mota, who you may remember is the winemaker at Mendel. I was taken through part of the winery and part of the range of wines by Soledad, from the hospitality department. She picked a few wines to show me, and you can read my notes here.

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December 22, 2011 · 10:47 am

Uco your way, and I’ll go mine (Mendoza, Argentina – Day Four)

In case you weren’t already aware, the Mendoza wine region is large in area and volume. Covering an area about the size of the entire Murray Darling Basin, and producing more wine than Australia and New Zealand combined, there are a lot of vineyards. There are also over 1,200 wineries, equivalent to all of Australia, and a range of different viticultural areas. The main difference between these areas is elevation, ranging from 800m to 1500m above sea level. The Uco Valley, 1.5 hours South of Mendoza city, is one of the more elevated and newer viticultural areas in Mendoza, and it was here I visited the only winery of the day. The reasons were two-fold. Firstly I didn’t realise how far away the winery was, and secondly because it was difficult to find and I took several wrongs turns. Worth the drive though, even in the blistering heat with virtually no air conditioning. It was also amazing how the Andes are so clear in the morning and you can see the snow-capped peaks, yet by the afternoon the clouds and fog has set in and they are almost invisible.

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December 17, 2011 · 2:15 pm

Once in a blue moon… (Mendoza, Argentina – Day Three)

Once in a while if you are really lucky you have a wine-related experience that fills you with such joy and yet regret that all wine can’t be like that. One of the things that makes these experiences so singular and invigorating is that they are always unexpected. I had one of these experiences in Mendoza today, and never thought it would happen here of all places. I think this was why it had such an impact on me. Getting slightly ahead of myself…

Carmelo Patti presses

Carmelo Patti presses

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December 16, 2011 · 8:31 pm

Anyone for icon wine? (Mendoza, Argentina – Day Two)

Mendoza gets pretty hot. Wanna know I found this out? The cheapest car I could rent (which isn’t that cheap) has really bad air conditioning. As I drove south from Mendoza city for another day of visits, I was very worried that I would get noticeable sweat stains on my shirt. Similar to Casa Lapostolle in Chile and Newton in Napa Valley, I was familiar with Terrazas de los Andes from my days at Domaine Chandon Australia, as they were part of the group. Having tried the wine and learning a lot about the brand, it was pretty mandatory that I visit to experience it personally. Through a connection back at home I used to work with, I was able to arrange a visit to the winery, which didn’t even come close to disappointing.

Old press at Terrazas

Old press at Terrazas

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December 16, 2011 · 12:13 am

Welcome relief (Mendoza, Argentina – Day One)

With absolutely no disrespect at all intended to Chile or any of the wonderful people I met whilst there, it was such a relief to be leaving considering all of the issues with getting around and making it to wineries on time. When I dropped off the rental car I tried to explain the complications with the GPS, but was met with general indifference. I was a little frustrated at the lack of WiFi in the terminal, as I could have got a bit of work done whilst I waited for my flight, which was late. Once we were up in the air though, none of it mattered; I was on my way to Mendoza and I got to enjoy views like this (albeit for only 25 minutes!)

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December 15, 2011 · 2:01 pm

Return of the Jedi (Maipo Valley, Chile – Day Four)

And thus through the error of circumstance I returned to Santiago two nights earlier than I originally intended. Whilst I wasn’t too thrilled about having to come back and suffer the trials and tribulations of driving in Santiago, I knew that I could get a few visits to wineries whilst there. As mentioned in my last post, I got the opportunity to meet Julio Bouchon Jnr. and his winemaker for a tasting of the J. Bouchon wines in their Santiago offices, and was also treated to a lovely dinner with my official Chilean host, Jaime Rosello. Jaime was again instrumental in me getting appointments for my final day in Chile, back again in the Maipo Valley. Over dinner I filled him in on the experiences I had further South whilst in the Colchagua, Curico, Maule and Cachapoal regions. At El Bacco where we ate, they also had Neyen by the glass, so I got to try the 2005 vintage, which interestingly tasted younger than the 2006. I will forever be indebted to Don Jaime for all of his generosity, time and connections for making my first trip to Chile so memorable.

The Madonna of Santiago

The Madonna of Santiago

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